American Hippo bill explained

House Resolution 23261, also known as the "American Hippo bill", was a bill introduced by Representative Robert F. Broussard of Louisiana in 1910 to authorize the importation and release of hippopotamus into the bayous of the state.^{[1] [2]}

Overview

Broussard argued the hippos would eat the invasive water hyacinth that was clogging the rivers and also produce meat to help solve the American meat predicament.^[3] The chief collaborators and proponents of Broussard's bill were Major Frederick Russell Burnham and Captain Fritz Duquesne.^{[4] [5]} Former President Theodore Roosevelt backed the plan, as did the U.S. Department of Agriculture, The Washington Post, and The New York Times, which praised hippo meat as "lake cow bacon".^[6] William Newton Irwin, a researcher for the United States Department of Agriculture recruited by Broussard, told Congress that the bill could add one million tons of meat to the yearly American supply, and further suggested that more exotic animals should be imported for the same purpose, including dik-diks, rhinoceroses, African buffalo, Tibetan yaks, and Manchurian pigs.^[7]

Although the "American Hippo Bill" developed a broad base of support, it was never passed by the US Congress.

See also

• Hippopotamuses in Colombia

Further reading

• Book: Love and Ruin: Tales of Obsession, Danger, and Heartbreak from The Atavist Magazine . . Introduction by Susan Orlean . 2016 . 978-0393352719 . Ratliff . Evan.

Notes and References

1. 20 December 2013. Miller . Greg . The Crazy, Ingenious Plan to Bring Hippopotamus Ranching to America. . https://web.archive.org/web/20150117001302/http://www.wired.com/2013/12/hippopotamus-ranching/. 17 January 2015. live . 1059-1028.
2. Book: Mooallem, John . American Hippopotamus . The Atavist . 2013 . New York . 7 March 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220130050943/https://magazine.atavist.com/american-hippopotamus/ . 30 January 2022.
3. News: 10 August 2014. Mooallem. Jon. Lake Bacon: The Story of The Man Who Wanted Us to Eat Mississippi Hippos. The Daily Beast. 13 August 2014. 0028-9604. August 15, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160815155120/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/08/10/the-men-who-wanted-to-every-american-to-eat-wholesome-hippo.html. live.
4. 27 March 2014. Eplett. Layla. The hunger game meat: How hippos early invaded American cuisine. Scientific American. 0036-8733. November 13, 2022. March 28, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140328214312/http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/food-matters/2014/03/27/the-hunger-game-meat-how-hippos-nearly-invaded-american-cuisine/. live.
5. Book: Burnham, Frederick Russell . Frederick Russell Burnham . Taking Chances . Haynes Corp . 1944 . Los Angeles. 978-1-879356-32-0. 11–23.
6. News: Lake Cow Bacon. The New York Times. 12 April 1910. November 13, 2022. November 13, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221113214109/https://www.nytimes.com/1910/04/12/archives/lake-cow-bacon.html. live.
7. Web site: Parks . Shoshi . 30 May 2023 . How the U.S. Almost Became a Nation of Hippo Ranchers . 2024-05-30 . . en . January 14, 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240114232525/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-us-almost-became-a-nation-of-hippo-ranchers-180982244/ . live .